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Whitfield, Palmieri, Zatkoff Named American Hockey League Award Winners for March

Published on April 1, 2011 under American Hockey League (AHL) News Release


SPRINGFIELD, Mass. ... The American Hockey League announced today that Providence Bruins center Trent Whitfield has been named the Reebok/AHL Player of the Month for March. Whitfield scored 12 goals and added 10 assists for a league-best 22 points in 13 games during the month.

Mired in a five-game drought entering March, Whitfield found the scoresheet in 10 consecutive contests from Mar. 4-25, a streak that began with two goals and an assist in a 4-2 win over Charlotte. He scored twice more and added two assists on Mar. 6 to lead Providence over Bridgeport, 6-0, and later would score a goal in four straight outings from Mar. 18-25, capped by a two-goal performance that included the game-winner in a 4-2 decision at Worcester. Whitfield wound up with a point on 22 of Providence's 39 non-shootout goals scored during the month (56.4 percent).

In recognition of his achievement, Whitfield will be presented with an etched crystal award prior to an upcoming Bruins home game.

Whitfield missed the first three months of the season after suffering an offseason Achilles injury, but has totaled 17 goals and 16 assists for 33 points in 40 games since his return, including a team-leading seven power-play goals. In 709 career AHL games during his 13 professional seasons, Whitfield has registered 230 goals and 334 assists for 564 points. The native of Alameda, Sask., has also skated in 193 NHL games in his career with Boston, St. Louis, the N.Y. Rangers and Washington.

Other nominees for Reebok/AHL Player of the Month include Adirondack center Ben Holmstrom, Binghamton right wing Roman Wick, Bridgeport right wing Rhett Rakhshani, Charlotte center Zach Boychuk, Chicago right wing Darren Haydar, Connecticut defenseman Pavel Valentenko, Hamilton left wing Nigel Dawes, Houston right wing Jon DiSalvatore, Lake Erie center Ben Walter, Manchester right wing Oscar Moller, Manitoba defenseman Mark Flood, Milwaukee center Chris Mueller, Norfolk goaltender Dustin Tokarski, Oklahoma City right wing Mark Arcobello, Peoria right wing Graham Mink, Portland right wing Mark Parrish, Rochester defenseman Mike Kostka, Rockford left wing Rob Klinkhammer, San Antonio right wing Mathieu Beaudoin, Syracuse left wing Patrick Maroon, Texas forward Greg Rallo, Toronto goaltender Ben Scrivens, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton forward Bryan Lerg and Worcester right wing Tommy Wingels.

SYRACUSE RIGHT WING KYLE PALMIERI NAMED REEBOK/AHL ROOKIE OF THE MONTH

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. ... The American Hockey League announced today that Syracuse Crunch right wing Kyle Palmieri has been named the Reebok/AHL Rookie of the Month for March. Palmieri scored 12 goals including five game-winners, and added three assists and a plus-8 rating in 13 games to help the Crunch to a 10-3-0-0 record with him in the lineup.

Palmieri tallied all 15 of his points during an eight-game scoring streak to end the month, a stretch that began when he scored the only goal in a 1-0 decision over Toronto on Mar. 18. He notched his second hat trick of the season and set a career high with four points during the Crunch's 6-2 win over Charlotte on Mar. 19, and scored twice in the third period of Syracuse's 5-2 victory at Hershey on Mar. 20. Palmieri recorded two goals and an assist as the Crunch beat Rochester, 6-4, on Mar. 26, and had another two-goal performance in a 4-3 win at Toronto on Mar. 30.

In recognition of his achievement, Palmieri will be presented with an etched crystal award prior to an upcoming Crunch home game.

Selected by Anaheim in the first round (26th overall) of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, Palmieri now leads all AHL rookies with 26 goals and is tied for fifth with 46 points in 56 games for Syracuse this season, and was the Crunch's representative at the 2011 AHL All-Star Classic presented by Capital BlueCross. The 20-year-old native of Smithtown, N.Y., has also picked up one goal in 10 NHL games with the Ducks this year, and skated for the United States at the last two World Junior Championships, capturing a gold medal in 2010 and a bronze in 2011.

Other nominees for Reebok/AHL Rookie of the Month include Binghamton defenseman Patrick Wiercioch, Bridgeport right wing Rhett Rakhshani, Chicago forward Tim Miller, Connecticut defenseman Blake Parlett, Houston center Casey Wellman, Lake Erie defenseman Cameron Gaunce, Manchester right wing Brandon Kozun, Manitoba defenseman Yann Sauve, Milwaukee goaltender Jeremy Smith, Norfolk defenseman Mark Barberio, Portland center Luke Adam, Rochester left wing A.J. Jenks, Rockford right wing Ben Smith, San Antonio defenseman Chris Summers, Texas right wing Sean Backman, Toronto goaltender Ben Scrivens and Worcester right wing Tommy Wingels.

MANCHESTER'S JEFF ZATKOFF NAMED REEBOK/AHL GOALTENDER OF THE MONTH

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. ... The American Hockey League announced today that Jeff Zatkoff of the Manchester Monarchs has been named the Reebok/AHL Goaltender of the Month for March. Zatkoff made nine appearances during the month and allowed just 14 goals on 276 shots, posting a 5-3-1 record, a 1.55 goals-against average, a .949 save percentage and two shutouts.

Zatkoff made 29 saves in a 3-2 overtime win at Worcester on Mar. 4, and earned a shutout with 26 stops on Mar. 12 vs. Bridgeport. He turned aside 26 shots to lead the Monarchs to a 4-2 victory in Portland on Mar. 13, and allowed two goals on 71 shots in a two-game series at Norfolk to close out the month, including a 35-save shutout of the Admirals on Mar. 25.

In recognition of his achievement, Zatkoff will be presented with an etched crystal award prior to an upcoming Monarchs home game.

Zatkoff, a third-round draft pick by Los Angeles in 2006, has a record of 19-15-5 in 42 games for Manchester this season, with a 2.61 GAA and a .913 save percentage with three shutouts. The 23-year-old native of Detroit, Mich., is in his third professional season and shows a career mark of 30-26-5 in 67 AHL games with the Monarchs.

Other nominees for Reebok/AHL Goaltender of the Month include Binghamton's Robin Lehner, Bridgeport's Nathan Lawson, Chicago's Edward Pasquale, Connecticut's Dov Grumet-Morris, Hamilton's Drew MacIntyre, Houston's Matt Hackett, Lake Erie's John Grahame, Manitoba's Eddie Lack, Milwaukee's Jeremy Smith, Norfolk's Dustin Tokarski, Portland's David Leggio, Providence's Anton Khudobin, Rochester's Tyler Plante, Rockford's Hannu Toivonen, San Antonio's Matt Climie, Syracuse's Timo Pielmeier, Texas's Richard Bachman, Toronto's Ben Scrivens, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's Brad Thiessen and Worcester's Carter Hutton.

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